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Alabama's ‘grandfamilies’ are set to receive opioid settlement funds

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Alabama is trying something new with money from legal settlements over the opioid epidemic. They're sending stipends to families where children are being raised by their grandparents. Drew Hawkins with the Gulf States Newsroom reports.

DREW HAWKINS, BYLINE: A bunch of kids are chasing each other around the tables in a church in New Market, Ala. Their grandparents are eating spaghetti and caesar salad. Their group is called Grandparents as Parents. In a little while, they'll head over to the chapel for some good news - this time from the state of Alabama. Everyone loves these get-togethers, but the reason they're in this group is a sad one.

DONNA STANDRIDGE: My daughter is addicted to drugs. Opioids is where it all began.

HAWKINS: Donna Standridge is 55. Her husband is 66, and their daughter has been in and out of rehab. So instead of retiring and traveling, they're raising their four grandsons.

STANDRIDFE: Because of the addiction, and being in active addiction, and relapsing and stuff when she was clean, it wasn't a healthy environment for them, so...

HAWKINS: Some of the kids here live with their grandparents because their parents died of an overdose - some from heroin, some from fentanyl. If these kids had no grandparents to take them in, they'd probably be in foster care. Almost half of children in foster care in Alabama are there because of their parents' substance use, but many of the grandparents live below the poverty line. Some only get social security. And obviously, grandparents are older, so getting a job can be difficult, or they just can't because of their health.

KEITH LOWHORNE: Some of them are living on $1,500 a month.

HAWKINS: Keith Lowhorne is the founder of Grandparents as Parents.

LOWHORNE: And that's not very much money these days and age when you're trying to take care of a kid, possibly a baby. You know, just think about the formula and the diapers and all the other things that you need. And then sometimes we got problems with preemies, 'cause they're born addicted.

HAWKINS: And grandparents in Alabama don't qualify for certain welfare programs. So far, Alabama has received almost $100 million from opioid settlements, and the state decided to direct some of that to grandparents. They call themselves grandfamilies. Grandfamilies can apply for a one-time payment of between $1,000 and $2,000. Lowhorne says it's not enough, but it's a good first step.

LOWHORNE: As far as we know, and as far as everyone has told us, I mean, this is the first for the country.

HAWKINS: They can use the money for things like groceries, bills or sports. Just that morning, Lowhorne had gone shopping for school uniforms with his granddaughter.

LOWHORNE: And let me tell you, I learned some things about how to shop with a young 7-year-old girl (laughter). But it was fun.

HAWKINS: You can find families like this all over the country.

ALI CALIENDO: Every state should be allocating a portion of their settlement dollars to families raising children who are victims.

HAWKINS: Dr. Ali Caliendo leads Foster Kinship, a support program in Nevada. That state is considering a similar program. For years, the opioid crisis has forced more and more children into foster care with strangers. But if grandparents can step in, they can stay with their families, and grandparents do it out of love. But...

CALIENDO: Love doesn't buy groceries. Love doesn't get beds. Love doesn't solve medical issues. So grandparents really do need extra financial support to make sure that those children can thrive.

HAWKINS: For now, grandfamilies in only three Alabama counties can apply for the one-time payment, and state officials can't say whether or not they'll do it again next year. For NPR News, I'm Drew Hawkins in New Market, Ala.

(SOUNDBITE OF FLAWED MANGOES' "FRAGILITY")

FADEL: This story comes from NPR's partnership with the Gulf States Newsroom and KFF Health News.

(SOUNDBITE OF FLAWED MANGOES' "FRAGILITY") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Drew Hawkins is the health equity reporter for the Gulf States Newsroom. He covers stories related to health care access and outcomes across the region, with a focus on the social factors that drive disparities.

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